ST : Enterprise : Mirror, Mirror
by Ckyblaze
Summary: This story takes place in the mirror universe of ST Enterprise. It follows Reed, Tucker and some other characters and their fight to ... save Earth!  What else?  ;
1. Chapter 1

_Cruelty has a human heart,  
And Jealousy a human face;  
Terror the human form divine,  
And Secrecy the human dress._

_The human dress is forged in iron,  
The human form a fiery forge;  
The human face a furnace sealed,  
The human heart a hungry gorge.  
William Blake_

The indicator monitoring the neural activity of Major Malcolm Reed jumped up from red to green. The previously comatose patient jerked from the pain in his head and abdomen as his consciousness returned from the twilight world. The world was dark around him. First he thought that the explosion had blinded him, but then remembered seeing Archer standing above him.

"_I have failed you Captain."_

The words made him wince. Why had the Captain not killed him, as he had performed his duty so poorly? The sense of failure had pursued him since T'Pol had been promoted to second in command by the Captain. A Vulcan! Archer had ignored Malcolm's place in the chain of command! And now he had humiliated him further by not killing him.

The thoughts made Malcolm angry and he rose up onto his elbows. A heavy pain in his right side reminded him of where he was: in the sick bay. The room was dark and cold, only a dampened yellowish-blue glow shone down from the patients' medical boards above the beds. Where was Phlox? He was usually up all night, performing his strange experiments on local fauna.

As Malcolm thought this, the air in the room seemed to become still. A flash before his eyes lit up the room it was almost unbearably white, but not so that he shut his eyes. Instead something was before him:

_It was Phlox, removing something red from a ship conduit. It looked to be on the Defiant. The sick bay was gone and only the picture of Phlox remained. Then another appeared before him, it was Tucker. He struggled with Phlox, his evil face giving up a grin as the alien fell to the floor. So typically of Trip, thought Malcolm. And then, the "agony booth". Again and again and then… death._

Malcolm blinked at the sight of the dead Denobulan. The room was dark again. Nothing was moving in it. Was he delusional? The thought struck him as ridiculous, as no-one in his family had suffered from delusions. But then, he had hovered above the doorstep to the realm of death for an indefinite period of time…

Steps were heard outside of the door. Malcolm fell down onto his bed again; shutting his eyes enough to make anyone coming into the room believe he was still in a coma. As predicted, a person entered sickbay. The person refrained from turning on the light; instead he set a steady course towards Malcolm's bed.

Serving in the Empire's Military left a person permanently on guard for traitors, as the easiest way to climb ranks was to murder you superior officers. Malcolm had experienced his fair share of these traitors, but had never been so poorly prepared. He didn't even have his knife under the pillow! As the character neared, with cold steel gleaming in his right hand, Malcolm tensed. Every muscle in his body had been trained for battle. A few wounds would not stop him; he could not allow them to! The person was right at his side now, and he could see it was lieutenant Pace. Malcolm had always thought him not to be any great threat. How long had he been away from events to make Pace take such an action?

The unknown wound at his side made him want to twitch, but he remained still… And when the blow finally came, he was ready. The knife came down close, and he could feel the sharp blade scratching his neck. Grabbing Pace by his neck and hand, Malcolm quickly turned the blade upwards. For a moment he reveled in the total look of surprise in Pace's face. Then he pulled him down on his own blade using his bodyweight.

"I am surprised, Pace, but you should have known better!" He hissed.

The blade etched itself between two of Pace's upper ribs, killing him almost instantly. Throwing him off himself, Malcolm sank down on the bed again. He was sweating from this simple effort! That did not bode well, as it suggested he had been "out" for a long time. Summoning his inner powers he rose again, this time sitting up straight. The bandage around his abdomen was tight, but there were traces of blood. It was difficult to say why, as he had no recollection of any surgery, or of what wounds he actually had.

And Phlox? Why had he seen him? Was it his aching mind that hallucinated after all the painkillers? It did not feel like it. He would not be surprised if the crew had "forgot" to give him any. He usually had that effect on people. Sneering at his own thoughts he turned to the screen. As his "hallucinations" did not have any direct effect on his current situation he disregarded them, turning his attention to his personal medical file.

It had been started by Phlox, documenting his leg, arm torso and head injuries. From what he could read out from the medical file it had been quite bad, leaving him only a fifty percent chance to survive. The fact startled him as he realized he had been lucky. Very lucky. Checking the date, he saw that he had been comatose for over eighteen days. No wonder he felt so exhausted. And hungry, he realized.


	2. Chapter 2

The looks thrown at Malcolm as he passed through the ship were not happy, welcoming ones. There would have been something seriously wrong if they had been. Still, the thought of that Pace was no longer guarding his back made him skittish and more unnerved than he would usually allow himself to be. Walking as straight as he could, he walked up on the bridge.

It was strange to walk on the new bridge. Although the design was similar to their old bridge, it was… different. And many new faces were on it as well. T'Pol was gone, Forrest of course and to his surprise… Archer. The cubical commander's chair was occupied by Hoshi. It made him stop in his tracks. Was _everyone_ from the old crew banished or dead? The scars in his face hurt as the look of surprise established itself on his face.

Hoshi must have seen his astonishment. She rose from the captain's chair and came up to him with a smile. Malcolm had learnt to see through it years ago. As she approached him, he also noticed a, to him, unknown officer sitting on his station. He gave Malcolm a quick look, without any obvious dislike in it. Deciding to worry about that later he focused his attention on Hoshi.

"Hoshi, what is this? Where is the Captain?" He eyed the room again. Someone hit him with the butt of a rifle, straight at his side. A short whimper came out of his mouth, but he managed to stay on his feet. After recovering enough to straighten, he turned. "Mayweather, what are you…?" He began in a scolding fashion.

"That's _Empress_ Sato to you, Major." Commented Mayweather.

"Empress? How is this possible… Hoshi?" Malcolm asked, at the same time he had been alerted to Mayweather being behind his back. As he tried to lunge a strike again, Malcolm simply blocked it, snapped the rifle out of his hands and returned the favor, hitting Mayweather in the solar plexus. That would keep him down for a moment or two.

"Major… " Hoshi began. "Malcolm… come to my room, I'll explain everything."

"That thing is not coming." Said Malcolm and pointed on Mayweather.

"No, we have things to discuss in private." Hoshi concurred. That seemed to make Travis upset, but he did not say a word. Instead he gave Malcolm one of those killing glances and retreated from the bridge. Hoshi waved Malcolm on towards the Captain's quarters. Still holding a hand on his side, he followed.

He noticed Archer's things, including the pillow on which his dog used to sleep. A big nasty thing he remembered. Hoshi lead him on to the desk, where she sat down into the armchair. She nodded for him to sit down next to her on a kind of low bar stool.

"I should not…" He said.

"Really?" She responded. "You look like you need a break." She gave up a smile and pushed the stool to him. Reluctantly he sat down, but he could not deny it was a relief. "Now, that looks better… At least you won't look so stuffed up."

"Stuffed…? But no matter, where is the Captain? I thought his coup succeed?"

"Oh but it did! But Jonathan had the misfortune to be poisoned. He died very quickly." The comment made Malcolm jump up from his seat. Wide eyed he turned around, as if to assure himself that this was not some elaborate joke, and then turned back to Hoshi. A stern look fell upon his face; it was not hard to guess who poisoned Archer.

"Did you find the guilty?" He asked.

"It was established that T'Pol and Dr. Phlox had conspired against Archer, and they have been dealt with… permanently." Hoshi rose from her chair. "Archer has been avenged." Malcolm turned to the window in order not to reveal how troubled he was by these news. All his adult life he had worked his way up in the MACO and Starfleet, gaining respect and most importantly, loyalty. Archer had _trusted_ him. They had never been friends, but there had been a professional relationship. And now it was gone! He could not believe that it was T'Pol and Phlox that had poisoned him, as they would gain nothing! Being a Commander, T'Pol would not have taken such a direct action. Phlox… was happy with his work. Malcolm had done some joint projects with him. The thoughts of Phlox poisoning Archer did not feel right to him.

"Is it right to assume that you used the superior power of the _Defiant_ to claim the title of Empress?" He asked, crossing his arms.

"What else could I do? You know how corrupted those Admirals down on Earth are!"

"What you did was for the good of the Empire, I understand that." He lied.

"I thought you might see it my way." Hoshi responded. "That is why I am going to make you my second in command, _Commander_ Reed. That was something Archer never did." He looked back at Hoshi, surprised. _A bribe. _He thought, how convenient!

"Captain!" He said. "Empress!"

"I insist, Malcolm, you've earned it!" Hoshi said and was suddenly quite close to him. "You will be my partner onboard this ship, and together we will bring Terran dominance further than anyone before us!" She let her hands slip around his waist. It was his move.

"I think I'll need a new Uniform for that." He said lightly, then put his hand on her cheek and kissed her. It seemed to surprise her for a second or two, as if she was not prepared for such a response. Malcolm found that amusing. She gave him a second look before her hands began pulling his jumpsuit off. Only then she seemed to notice the bandage strapped around his abdomen.

"You should rest." She said, tugging him to the Captain's bed.

"Is that an order?" He asked, landing on the bed with Hoshi ontop.

"Yes..." She purred.

"Then I have no choice but to comply, Captain." He said and kissed her again. She eagerly returned his embrace.


	3. Chapter 3

_He was alone in the Captain's quarters. __But the room was now illuminated by a hot white sun that spread its rays over the room through the window. Confused, Malcolm tried to open the door that lead to the bridge, but the command would not respond. He even hailed the bridge without any success._

"_Reed." Someone said behind his back. The voice made him jump; his hand instinctively went to his side, where he had his gun. It wasn't there, neither was his belt. To his amazement, Captain Archer was in front of him._

"_You… are dead!" Reed exclaimed._

"_You know who killed me." Archer said. "Make things right, avenge me!"_

"_You are not real!" Countered Malcolm. "I must be dreaming."_

"_Reed, whilst you were in a coma, your own brain rerouted itself. This new rout allows you to see residual energies of those dead. We are not real, but yet… we are... fragments. It is unexplainable. Not even I can tell you how it happened, but now that you see me, you have to listen…"_

"_I do not believe you. This is just a mind trick." Malcolm said angrily. "Let me out!"_

"_Listen… she poisoned me with champagne, she has Travis Mayweather on her side, the Starfleet dares not intervene… And now she tries to lure you into her web." Continued Archer._

"_Tell me something I do not know!"_

"_You have allies on this ship, those who believe Starfleet should be ruled from Earth. Contact Admiral Donna. She may help."_

"_Admiral Donna? And who else?" Asked Malcolm scornfully._

"_You'll notice, Commader Reed." Archer said, and then gave up a grin. Malcolm had never seen him do that. Then both Archer and the room faded and he was left in the darkness, alone._

A sound of movement made him open his eyes. He was back in the _real_ Captain's quarters. He sat up in the bed with crossed legs and looked around. He was sweating. Hoshi was already up he noticed, dressed in her bathrobe she was sitting by the computer, doing something he could not see.

"Oh, I woke you?" She asked.

"No, it's just my wound that's hurting." He said. That was not a complete lie. It did hurt. "I need to visit sick bay today… Who is he new doctor?"

"I do not know… someone from the medical staff I suppose. That is not my responsibility really." Hoshi said and went over to the wardrobe.

"Not you responsibility...?" Murmured Malcolm to himself.

"You should choose a new leader for the MACO soldiers today." Hoshi continued. "You will of course command them but, they will need a team leader." She took a pad from a stool and threw it to him. "Here is the list, report to me this evening who you choose." Malcolm scrolled through the page.

"I need to decide today?" He asked.

"Today." She said and walked up to him. In her hand she held two uniforms. "These are yours." She said. "One is the MACO outfit with your new grade, the other one of the ship's own design, its red." She added and gave him the two sets of clothes. He chose the second one. It was easier to wear when you had a bandaged abdomen.

"I'll go and have my breakfast now, and then to sickbay… and after that, I'll decide." He said.

"Do as you wish." Hoshi said. Then she pulled on her clothes and strutted out of the room. An eerie quietness fell over the room, reminding Malcolm of his "dream". He was not convinced by it, so he would put off the talk to Admiral Donna until he was certain that it was not another one of Hoshi's or Mayweather's tricks. It could be them trying to set him up.

With those thoughts in mind he dressed. First he took on the dark trousers and boots, then the undershirt and then the pullover red shirt with the insignia of the _Defiant_ and of the Commander. The clothes were both comfortable and warm, he was not sure, but he thought that they regulated the temperature automatically as well. Still, it was hard to believe that they were from the future… And an alternate one as well! With the Federation and the "Great Explorer" Archer! He laughed at the thought. He would have to look through the database again, perhaps even finding "himself". In any case, the database was a goldmine of knowledge.

He picked up the other MACO uniform. Reminding himself to pick up a new blaster at the armoury, he set his course towards the bridge. Thankfully, Mayweather was not there. But the same man that had occupied the security and tactical station was there. He noticed Malcolm as well.

"I have never seen you before." Commented Malcolm. "Who are you?"

"Sergeant Hayes, sir." He responded. "I came in with the MACO reinforcements from Earth just a week ago." Malcolm overlooked him. Was there something familiar about his face?

"We have already left Earth?" He asked.

"Yes, sir." Answered Hayes. "Do you wish me to introduce you to the new MACO's?"

"After breakfast, if you would join me?"

"Certainly sir!" Said Hayes and waved another man to his station. "After you sir!" Malcolm nodded at the comment and continued into the turbolift.

After dropping off his second uniform in his new quarters, they went for breakfast. The cantina was not overly crowded as breakfast had almost passed by the time they arrived. They looked around for a moment, finally finding someone that looked like they worked there.

"Would you like to have breakfast, sirs?" Asked the chef. He did not sound overly enthusiastic.

"Yes." Said Malcolm. The chef gave him something that looked like a plastic card.

"Coffee, black." Said Hayes. He received another card. They both went over to the wall, sticking their cards into a slot. A moment later food came out through an opening hatch. Hayes got his coffee. They retreated to a more secluded part of the cantina, as the main part was occupied by more low ranking crewmen, which seemed not to appreciate their company.

"So, Hayes, what do you do here?" Malcolm asked, sitting down.

"Do…? I was sent here by Starfleet, Empress Sato needed more MACO's as…" Hayes stopped, realizing what he was about to say. He seemed almost afraid now. Malcolm used that to his advantage.

"Tell me, Sergeant, when Commander T'Pol and Phlox were removed, had Sato already ascended to her position?"

"Yes… the ex commander and the doctor were accused of Captain Archer's death, and they were executed by her orders." Hayes commented quickly. Malcolm began eating whatever was on the plate; obviously he could not get Hoshi _that_ way. "Sir?" Asked Hayes. "Is there anything wrong?"

"You were about to say earlier that as so many MACO's died on our previous mission, you were here to… resupply the _Defiant_?" Malcolm shot him a glance. He did not have anything against Hayes…yet.

"Bluntly said… yes. But I think Starfleet did not just send anyone they could find… sir." Hayes looked around himself. Malcolm stopped chewing. What Hayes was saying was that Starfleet had sent Earth loyal men. Malcolm came to think about his dream. _You have allies on this ship._

"Why do you approach me with this? You didn't notice where I spent the night?" The phrase made Hayes hesitate, but then he just shrugged. He spoke once more, this time in a more confident voice:

"I quote: _Talk to that scuttling little bastard on the bridge. If you ask him nicely he might consider sparing you from that agony booth of his!_ It is hard to misinterpret the words, sir. Because you _are_ the one that got "the booth" together right?"

"With the help of Phlox, yes." Admitted Malcolm, it wasn't often someone actually praised him for his work. He continued: "So it was Trip who proposed me?"

"Commander Tucker, sir."

"That's the one. That little…" Malcolm let his words fade.

"Why Trip?" Asked Hayes.

"Charles Tucker the _third_, Sergeant. Triple. Trip. But I suggest you call him Commander as long as you can, because you don't really want to get to know him personally. Trust me."

"Personal experience sir?"

"We served together for a long time onboard the Enterprise, before Forrest managed to get it blown up." Malcolm said and pushed away the food tray from himself. "I'm done." He said.

"Yes sir. We ought to head over to the armoury training quarters. We should be able to catch most of the MACO's there. They have their training sessions now." Said Hayes as they rose.

"Training sessions? Today? I have not ordered any additional sessions." Malcolm grumbled. It was indeed something for Hayes to go around the ship deciding what _his_ MACO's were supposed to do.

"Sir… I added them. The men were getting restless. And we need to have the best on our side in case Empress Sato tries anything…" Began Hayes.

"I should put you in that booth of mine." Said Malcolm coldly. That seemed to make the Sergeant stir.

"Just listen, sir. If I had not done so, Mayweather would already have disbanded them! I did not wish to take any unauthorized action, but seeing to the probable consequences if I had done nothing forced me to do _something_! Sato has the main crew on her side, but we have the MACO's. Imagine if they had managed to get them removed!" They once again stepped into the turbolift.

"You are saying that you outmanoeuvred Sergeant Mayweather under the nose of Sato?" Malcolm asked after a moment of silence.

"Yes." Answered Hayes. The lift stopped at the floor leading to the armoury.

"I might yet use you, Sergeant." Malcolm said as he stepped out.

"Yes, sir."

"Good work." Added Malcolm. "But you're not out of the woods yet!" Hayes face lightened ever so slightly.


	4. Chapter 4

The following hour Malcolm spent in the training area close to the armoury. He found the new men to be not much different from his old. They would do for the moment. As he finished the round he dismissed Hayes, who set a straight course towards the bridge. He disappeared as the turbolift doors closed. Malcolm looked at them for a while. Perhaps Hayes was telling the truth, perhaps not. He could have that checked. Even if it was true that he secured the MACO's, Hayes would have to do a lot more than some training schedules to earn any trust. Malcolm turned and walked away.

The armoury storage was a cold and quiet place. There was not much commotion here unless there was an actual battle situation, and that was something that Malcolm had always liked about this place. Here he gathered his thoughts, when he had the time. In one of the lockers, opened with his access code, he found what he was looking for. He donned the belt holding his blaster, pulling the black holding strip over his shoulder and attached it to the back of the belt. He made sure it was tight and strapped before attaching the knife at his side. He closed the locker and locked it again. The only thing he needed now was a communicator._ That_ he could only get in engineering.

"Damn it!" He said. Turning to leave, a figure wearing the same red shirt as he did blocked his path. He tensed instantly, but as the figure emerged into the light, he just became annoyed. Before him was Trip, the lightning in the armoury hid the deformed side of his face as he approached from the shadows. He looked equally annoyed to be there.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" He asked.

"What's this cloak & dagger crap you're pulling, huh, Delta-man?" Countered Malcolm.

"I'll never get used to that mushy accent of yours, Reed" Trip responded. "But I don't care about it now; this ship has bigger problems than _you_." Trip sat down on a torpedo, putting one hand on his knee. Malcolm, looked down on him for a while, but decided to stay. Sitting down opposite of Trip he crossed his arms.

"I have understood _that_ much. But what is the problem, really? What do you care if Hoshi is Empress? She's causing problems?"

"Aren't you clever? The thing is that Starfleet has not yet accepted the change of power… Hoshi wishes to control everything, even Starfleet command… at all points."

"Impossible." Murmured Malcolm.

"Well, there it is for ya', Commander! She has plans of dismissing the Admirals, thus gaining obsolete control over the entire fleet. And if they don't comply… she'll attack Earth!" The word made Malcolm rise hastily to his feet.

"Earth? Is she insane? Is this what Hayes talked about?" Trip got up.

"Hold it! _Yes_ is the answer to _all_ your questions. Here is your new communicator, I rigged it so they can't track or monitor you calls. Now you and Hayes do some of your MACO stuff and I'll talk to my engineers…" Trip threw him the communicator. Malcolm looked at it, as he looked up, the scene had changed.

_He was in the corridor leading to the airlock, it was crowded and bright. Next to him was Trip, he was looking at something in front. Malcolm turned his eyes forward. It was T'Pol in the airlock… And Pholx, but he looked dead already. He noticed a guard by the airlock. Hoshi was there as well. She had a look of amusement on her face, so did many of the surrounding crewmen.  
Sergeant Hayes and the MACO's were there too. Hayes had a placid look on his face, as if he was thinking about something else. The outer doors of the airlock opened on Hoshi's command. T'Pol's face did not change, but her eyes flinched towards something to the right of Malcolm. He looked right at Trip. His face was dark, but his eyes followed T'Pol. Malcolm finally understood. Had he been so blind before so that he had not realized what was going on? Trip closed his eyes, seemingly gathering himself._

Malcolm was staring at the communicator. Trip was already turning to walk out of there.

"You are doing this for _her_ aren't you?" Malcolm almost blurted out. Trip stopped, his hand hovering over the opening button.

"What?" He said, turning.

"You loved T'Pol... And now you're going to avenge her… Charles." Malcolm said. Trip just looked at him, opened his mouth but then closed it again. The he pushed the button to the door and walked out.

"_What the hell is wrong with you?"_ Malcolm could hear him say as the door closed. The armoury became silent once more. Trip's little eruption confirmed Malcolm's suspicions, but it did not matter. Having the Chief Engineer on your side made you look past a few things… until this mess was over.

Finding he was still holding the communicator, Malcolm attached it to his belt. Having his set complete, he could now finally go to sick bay. The halls were not yet familiar to him, so it took over ten minutes before he finally found his way back there. A nurse was the only living thing there. Malcolm leaned on the table, looking at her.

"Where is the doctor?" He asked. Then he took another glance at the nurse.

"The doctor went for early lunch, you see, won't be back for an hour, sir."

"An entire hour? What should we do during that hour?"

"We'll think of something…" The nurse said, extending a hand towards Malcolm. "Don't we always?"

"We always do." He agreed, taking her hand.


	5. Chapter 5

An hour and thirteen minutes later the front door to the sick bay opened again. Malcolm was sitting on a stool, reading through the MACO list of possible majors. Looking up he sat still for a while before realizing he had seen the red headed doctor somewhere before. He put away the list.

"Victoria." He said with a doubtful inclination in his voice. The doctor looked up, finally seeing Malcolm. For a while they were each others stunned reflections. It was now no doubt that Malcolm knew her, but it had been such a long time he had forgotten…

"Malcolm." She answered. They looked at each other for yet some time before Malcolm finally took a deep breath and rose from the stool.

"Are you the new doctor?" He asked.

"Yes."

"I thought you said that you'd never work in space!"

"Is that why you're here?" She asked. "To be as far away from _me_ as possible?"

"_You_ ran away as I remember." He countered.

"It was an ordered retreat, I had other plans." Answered Victoria. "But that was _ages_ ago; I am here because I make a fortune working here. My question is what you are doing here? In MY sickbay?" As an answer to that Malcolm pulled his shirt up. Victoria began laughing. "Are you hurt?" She asked.

"Indeed." He muttered. "Just do whatever you do quickly, I have work to do."

"I won't waste your precious time, don't worry." She said while walking over to him. "What did you do?" She asked while examining him. "Run into the warp engine?"

"It was an explosion. I was in coma for eighteen days."He said, looking at her curly red hair dancing all around as she examined him. She looked at his face to see if he was pulling her leg, but realized he was telling the truth. Finally she took out a scanner.

"It unusual to wake up after eighteen days of coma." She commented. "You were lucky."

"Luck would have been avoiding that explosion altogether." Commented Malcolm. Victoria eased away and retrieved a hypo.

"Painkillers… will last you until tomorrow, you come back here then." She pushed the hypo into his neck. The pain subdued in his head and abdomen.

"Doctor." He said.

"Commander." She returned. Malcolm adjusted his shirt and walked away. He did not look back.

After eating something that the chefs claimed was lunch he returned up on the bridge. It was refreshing not to feel any pain anymore. The sensation was easily forgotten when you were in constant pain. And when you were not, you could not remember how it hurt before. That was another one of humanity's quirks.

Looking around he found Hayes sitting at the tactical station. Mayweather was still gone. The others he knew by face but not by name.

"Officer on the deck." Called Hayes. Everyone rose, but Malcolm waved them down again. They quickly returned to their duty.

"Navigator, where exactly are we going?" He asked the person at the helm.

"Antikol Beta, sir. Our reinforcements should be waiting there." The man said. Malcolm went over to Hayes.

"What reinforcements?" He asked quietly.

"To make sure the admirals do not oppose themselves back on Earth when we return. If they do oppose us… "_poff"_ … the Earth is back at the Stone Age."

"Does she think that they will?"

"No-one gives up their power without a struggle, Commander… At least in this universe… I believe that the admirals are assembling a fleet of their own."

"They won't last against this ship…"

"That is why we are here… to stop this madness..!" Explained Hayes. Malcolm nodded and turned around.

"Who is new to this bridge?" He asked out loud while taking his place in the Captain's chair. Two hands came up, one from the navigator he had just asked and one from the communications station. "Did you come aboard from Earth?"

"Yes, sir." They echoed. Malcolm overlooked them. The navigator was nothing special; at least that was his first impression. Probably just out of the Academy. He had short cut hair and blue eyes.

"What is your name?" Malcolm asked.

"Raymond McCall, sir." He responded. Nodding, Malcolm turned his gaze to the communicator. It was a tall woman with ivory black hair and an appealing chocolate brown skin. Her eyes were deep, dark and direct, focusing on Malcolm.

"And you?" He said.

"I am Alice Silverstone." She said. It was proud words, which surprised Malcolm. There were not many proud or optimistic officers in the Starfleet.

"Charming." He said. "Continue to do your work well and there will be a place for you here, if you do not… well it's out the airlock." He said with a small grin on his face. Then he retrieved his list and began going through it again. The crew settled into their work once again.

Going through the list, Malcolm realized that he did not have much choice. Most of the men he did not know or did not want, in the end there were four people left. It was two of his old men, Hayes and Mayweather. Hoshi would prefer Travis; Malcolm could not imagine having him as his second man. Hayes was new and untested. The other two were proved men, but their loyalty equalled zero. They had been under Paces' command and thus more loyal to him than to Malcolm. He continued to look at the list for a long time.


	6. Chapter 6

Charles Tucker walked into the mess about seven in the evening. He went over to one of the chefs and received the supper "card".

"Don't you have any pecan pie?" He grumbled. The chef, obviously a new recruit because of the staring at the right side of his face, shook her head.

"What kind of service is that? I can get better food on a Vulcan freighter!" With those words he left the chef and marched over to the wall, where he received his supper. Then he looked for somewhere to sit. It was crowded, but one of the tables was reserved for Starfleet officers only. He frowned as he saw _Commander_ Reed gulping down that hideous black tea of his. The only free spaces were around _him. _It was if he had some kind of energy shield around himself, keeping everyone at a distance. Everyone except Hoshi… Trip gave up a grin. For Queen and Country indeed!

"Make some place will ya?" He said and sunk down on a chair. Malcolm looked up at him.

"What, you want another go in the agony booth?" He asked, giving him a wry, cold smile.

"You got your dose from Admiral Forrest, as I recall." Countered Trip. The smile disappeared from Malcolm's face.

"To the _late_ Admiral Forrest." Malcolm said and raised his cup.

"He was a prick." Agreed Trip and raised his cup of juice. They both took a sip from their respective drinks. Malcolm had a strange look on his face. Trip hoped it was something that was bothering him.

"When you return to engineering, be sure to watch out for things falling on your head."

"That explosion really messed your head up, Malcolm. What the hell does that mean?"

"It means… watch you back. People are after your post too, Commander Tucker… But now I'm leaving. Its impossible breath when you are nearby. You reek of plasma exhausts like some reptilian mechanic!" Commented Malcolm with a chilly tone before rising and leaving the mess. Trip looked after him, wondering what was wrong with that man. The he began eating the supper.

Malcolm sure hoped that Trip took his words seriously, "seeing" him get hit in the head with a warp modulator was refreshing, but would not help Malcolm stop Hoshi. But Trip knew he was the head of security, and that he knew almost every rumour on the ship. He would take precautions.

Turning off towards his quarters, Malcolm was about to open is door when a reflection made him flinch and turn around. He barely managed to dodge a blade, reacting instinctively he jabbed the person in the stomach. As the person swayed Malcolm gripped him by his arm, put a foot behind the other man's leg and pulled it forward. The action made the person tip over and down on the floor. He saw it was one of Pace's men, just as he had predicted.

Without hesitation Malcolm pulled out his blaster, aiming at him. The man still had the knife, which he threw at Malcolm. It bounced off the wall behind him. Not wishing to give the assassin a third chance Malcolm fired. The ray vaporized the man instantly in a spectacular fiery fashion, as Malcolm never had his blaster at stun, unless ordered to.

"Marvellous." Commented Malcolm before he picked up the knife from the floor. These new blasters were so much more refined than their old ones..! He went into his quarters. It was nothing more than a bed, a wardrobe, a computer and a bathroom. His black MACO form was lying on the bed where he had left it.

"Computer." He said. The device on his desk hummed to life. "Find file on Starfleet Officer Malcolm Reed." While it processed his request he went over to the window. The stars were flying past him, the suns of thousands of systems. How was the Empire supposed to control all this? Or perhaps it wasn't? He frowned. What if their world was the _wrong_ one? As T'Pol had explained to him, it was not a parallel world, it was a mirror world. Obviously humans had been and were the driving forces behind the multi-racial Federation in the other world. The _Enterprise_ had been a peaceful ship of exploration. But was that better than his way of life? Better than the Empire? He assumed it was a relative question, based on your own point of view.

He turned back to the computer; surprising himself by being slightly nervous. The computer had indeed found a file. Slowly he sat down into the small armchair. He checked the picture; it was indeed him, but still not. His hair was longer, browner. He was a _Lieutenant_! That was even lower than Major! He continued reading:

"_Malcolm Reed was British and was descended from a family with a strong military/naval tradition."_

"_Reed was the senior armoury officer aboard Enterprise. He helped complete the ship's first mission, which was intervening in a Suliban plot to cause civil war in the Klingon Empire."_

"_Reed was a master of adapting to difficult situations. In an early battle, during the mission an alien force attacked and attempted to capture the crew so they could drain them of their bodily fluids. After Enterprise's weapons failed to penetrate the enemy's shields, he cooperated with an Axanar vessel to drive off the enemy. This was only one of many such occasions."_

"_During the final days of the Xindi mission, he led a team that boarded a sphere in order to get information about the Sphere Builders, the aliens who were behind the plot to destroy Earth. After Major Hayes was killed in the rescuing Hoshi, Reed took over the MACOs. He led them on the final mission aboard the superweapon and helped to successfully destroy it."_

This piece Malcolm had to read again. _Major_ Hayes? He grinned. And why had the Xindi tried to destroy the Earth?

"_Reed was also involved in designing new and improved equipment for the Enterprise. This included the EM- barrier and improved weapons efficiency. He is also credited to have implemented the first 'tactical alert'."_

"_He was a good friend of Charles 'Trip' Tucker. The Chief Engineer and Commander of the Enterprise."_ Malcolm leaned back into the armchair, letting out a long breath. This was wrong…

He continued by accessing a few pictures attached to "his" biographical file. As if someone "up there" really wished to set his head spinning today, there just happened to be a picture of that other Lieutenant Reed and Commander Tucker, happy, smiling at an unknown planet. Malcolm rose from the chair, walked a few laps around his quarters to calm himself and then sat down again. He barely recognized Trip without his scarred face. Swallowing he looked at the next picture, showing the entire party of officers of the first _Enterprise_.

"By all the Emperors!" He said. Archer was the Captain from the _start_! Everyone else was there too, T'Pol, Phlox, Hoshi, Travis, Trip… Feeling himself slightly dizzy Malcolm shut the computer down. It looked like they all got along like a big family! "What's wrong with you?" He said out loud and retrieved his assassin's knife. With it in hand he marched out of his quarters.


	7. Chapter 7

Hoshi gave up a small laugh and settled into her armchair.

"Who is Hayes? Do I even know him?" She asked.

"Doubtful." Answered Malcolm. He remained standing in the middle of the room, his hand behind his back.

"Why him?"

"Because out of my two old Sergeants, one tried to kill me just an hour ago. The other one will undoubtedly try it again if he has the chance. Promoting him would give him a golden opportunity. Travis Mayweather is experienced, yes, but he would get stars in his eyes as soon as he is Major. I would be dead before morning. So you see, I choose Hayes because he won't try to kill me for at least a week or two." Malcolm had a small grin on his face. Hoshi stood up and closed in on him.

"_Why_ are you grinning like that, Commander?" She asked.

"Well, Hayes is new, that means I get to push him around a little more than usual… I look forward to that." He grinned and looked at her. She gave him a kiss before walking over to the computer again.

"I'll notify the personnel that this Hayes will be the new MACO Major." She said. "Just promise you won't go easy on him!" She said smiling. "Fresh fish like him need to know who's in charge!"

"You know I would never do that…" Commented Malcolm. He took out the assassin's knife from his belt. "Here, a little gift from the late Sergeant… whatever his name was." Hoshi took it from him, studying it.

"MACO issue." She said. "Very nice!" She replaced her old one in her belt. She gave him the old one. "Go scrap it somewhere."

"Yes Captain." He said. "Good Night."

"You won't join me for a workout?" She grinned.

"Workout? I can barely move with this bandage! And you need to save your energy for tomorrow, Captain." He cocked his head. "And I need to speak to Hayes, he'll be surprised."

"Very well, you are right. Tomorrow is a big day..! I'll have to organize the entire fleet, talk to the ship captains… You may go, Commander, until tomorrow." She gave him a glance. He returned it before nodding and exiting the Captain's quarters. When he came around to the turbolift he entered it and said:

"The bridge." As the doors closed he gave up a sigh. He sure hoped Hayes was there.

The bridge was quiet, only lower ranking officers attended the stations. Malcolm quickly waved them down and sat down into the captain's chair. The stars were flying past in front of him, as they always were.

"Communications." He said, without raising his voice too much. He did not wish to break the quiet atmosphere for some reason. It was something that everyone understood, and complied to. Perhaps the human mind needed solitude once in a while.

"Yes Commander?"

"Locate Sergeant Hayes for me." The communicator fibbled with the relays for some time before finally turning a round.

"In the sparring room sir. Deck E."

"Deck E." Echoed Malcolm and rose. He silently moved off the bridge.

The sparring rooms were, as before, close to the armoury. Malcolm entered through the door, finding, as promised by the communication officer, Sergeant Hayes. Malcolm watched him for a while from the shadows before announcing his arrival. Hayes almost jumped at the sight of him, then turned and saluted.

"Commander!" He said. "I did not hear you arrive!"

"Of course you didn't." Said Malcolm dryly. "What are you doing here so late?"

"Training, sir."

"You don't believe in sleep?"

"I sleep three hours per night, sir. I can't cope with more, so I train, or read. Sometimes I'm on the bridge. But you did not come here to ask that, did you, sir?" Malcolm shook his head.

"I am promoting you to my new second in command, thus giving you the rank of major." Hayes looked at him for a second, and then saluted again.

"I accept." He said. Malcolm nodded, fingering on his belt.

"But first I'll need a little sparring. One on one."

"You want to fight? Now? Are you sure sir?" Hayes looked slightly awkward, standing in the middle of the sparring room, in the night, in soaked training gear, sweating. Malcolm pulled off his belt.

"Oh don't worry!" He said and flinched his head. "You won't win!" Hayes looked slightly baffled, but took up his guard anyhow. Malcolm did the same. Although he was not in shape, he had no doubts he could beat Hayes. His little spying session just recently had allowed him to judge Hayes' abilities. Now he could get a feel of his strength as well, just in case he would jump Malcolm after his promotion.

Hayes jabbed at him. Malcolm dodged. It was easier for him, as he was smaller than Hayes. After a minute or two of warming-up Malcolm began berating Hayes with all possible strange and alien combinations of punches, blows, kicks and throws. Hayes kept up in a most reasonable fashion, meaning he tried not to get hit all the time. He too of course managed to get a lucky blow or two, giving Malcolm a soar jaw and an even more hurting abdomen. But that was just luck, Malcolm played on experience instead and finally Hayes fell flat, spreading out on the floor as if he wished to swim. It took him a minute to come to his senses. When he did, he found Malcolm sitting on the floor.

"That'll be five hours of sleep for me sir." Commented Hayes, rising to a sitting position.

"Good, be on the bridge early. We have an important rendezvous tomorrow." Malcolm said and rose to his feet. He picked up his belt on the way out.

"Yes sir." Answered Hayes behind his back.

"Until tomorrow, _Major_." Said Malcolm and exited the room. He walked back to his quarters at a slow pace, as he had no hurry to get into bed.


	8. Chapter 8

His sleep was shallow with dreams he did not remember when he woke. They kept rolling in over him all night, like clouded waves of things past and present. At five twenty five he woke again. Knowing he would not get any more sleep he forced himself to rise from the bed.

"Lights on." He said. The white light shone up his quarters. It made Malcolm squint with his eyes. Slowly he walked over to the bathroom. There he removed the bandage from around his stomach. The scar was still healing. The same thing was happening on his arm, leg and face. To say it hurt was to diminish the real feeling. He stepped into the shower, washing himself as well as he could before pulling out a towel from the shelf next to the shower. Then he took on the task of shaving and fixing his hair. It was beginning to turn grey at his temples. He could not remember the "other" Reed having this problem. Almost snorting at himself he left the bathroom. The bright light was not that irritating anymore.

Today was a day that the MACO outfit would be most suitable. Malcolm doubted that the crew from the other starships would find the red shirt appropriate. He was also going to lead the MACO Company today. After returning the bandage to its rightful place he dressed up into the grey urban-camouflage suit and added the black vest ontop. He left the top buttons of the suit unbuttoned, letting the brown t-shirt remain visible. His belt with the phaser pistol and knife completed the uniform.

"Lights off." He said as he walked out. The clock was five fifty seven.

The mess was almost deserted this time in the morning. He received food quickly and was soon done. As usual he ate alone. Not wasting time he scurried up to the bridge. Alice Silverstone was already there, sitting above her controls like an Amazon watching for prey. The rest of the crew was the usual bland blend of early morning people.

"How soon until we arrive to Antikol System?" He asked.

"Thirty two minutes." Answered the navigator. Malcolm settled in the Captain's chair.

"How many ships are we expecting to meet?"

"Twelve sir." Someone said.

"All NX-class?"

"Yes sir." Malcolm leaned back. It was good, as the _Defiant_ had a top speed of warp factor 9! It would have to drag with the warp 5 ships back to Earth! That gave him more time to think about how to dispose of Hoshi and return the power of the fleet to Starfleet. As his thoughts lingered on her, she entered and he stood.

"I have the bridge." She said. "Commander Reed, you will monitor the science station today."

"Yes Empress." He responded, moving off to the left. Hayes arrived to the bridge as well, taking the tactical station.

It was not long until they jumped out of warp in the Antikol system. Malcolm quickly reviewed the data from the scan. His conclusions made him furrow his brows. There was something wrong. His sensors only picked up one ship… He looked out. The view confirmed his suspicions.

"Something is wrong." Confirmed Hayes. "There is only one ship at the coordinates." Malcolm reviewed the received data, concluding that something was very wrong with the ship. Power was down, and there were no lifesigns onboard. He conveyed these facts to Hoshi. She gave him a quick look, but then settled back into the chair. He continued scans.

"There is a breathable atmosphere onboard the ship, but many parts are damaged beyond repair." He commented.

"I suggest we beam aboard, Empress. There may be something in the logs." Said Hayes.

"As acting science officer I agree, something destroyed that ship and killed the crew, but the scanners only reveal traces of an unknown biological residue around and inside the ship, we should make it a priority to investigate the ship."

"I will remain here." Said Hoshi. "I will scan for the other ships. Commander Reed, you take Hayes with his MACOs, Tucker and Silverstone. Have Trip restore power and Silverstone… you take care of the log. Is that clear?"

"Yes Empress." Replied Malcolm and rose, he trotted out quickly with Hayes and Silverstone. After getting the MACOs and some extra weapons they grabbed some breathing masks and then hurried to the transporter. Trip was already there. Alice gave him a mask.

"Mornin'." He said sarcastically. "I see you got yourself a new Major."

"Wonderful to see you too." Muttered Malcolm. "Now get the mask on and shut up." They all pulled the masks over their faces. First the MACO team beamed away, lead by Hayes. Then Malcolm, Trip and Alice. It was an unsettling experience, but he had done this so many times he could not care less about his molecules dissolving and then being assembled somewhere else.

As the world appeared in front of him, it was dark. Flashlights were searching the transporter room for any threats. Malcolm looked around the room. It was like the one on the _Enterprise_. Trip was already at a relay, doing something. Hayes had secured the room. Malcolm signed for him to secure the hallway outside of the room as well. The MACO team silently moved to and out the door. They had to open it manually, as power was gone.

"Secured!" Called Hayes. "No lifesigns detected!"

"Trip?" Asked Malcolm, looking over his shoulder. "What's taking so long?" Trip gave him an evil glance .

"The power is gone, we need to get to engineering and start the entire ship up if we wish to access the logs."

"You can't get the logs without the main power?" Trip rose from the relay.

"The data is in a computer, we won't get it out unless the computer is powered. And the only way to power it up is to turn on the whole damn ship!" He whinged.

"Cool you engine, Trip." Muttered Malcolm and turned to the rest of the boarding party.

"We'll all go to engineering, if we get the power on, we'll go to the bridge." He said. "Let's go! And by the way, remove the masks. Whatever killed the crew is gone. " They moved out to the hallway and continued towards engineering, it took them a considerable amount of time as they had to open all the doors manually. As they reached the corridor leading to the engine room Hayes, who lead the caravan, stopped.

"Hold, Commander." He said, looking at something that looked like a small computer. He had a vague recollection that it was called a tricorder. Obviously it picked up things their scanners did not.

"Major?" Asked Malcolm.

"There is a large amount of delta radiation coming out of the main engine room. It is most probably a leak somewhere in the reactor core." Alice looked slightly unnerved, and then glanced at Trip. He returned her glance with a grin.

"What a wonderful surprise!" He said and then added bluntly: "I'll go."

"It is potentially lethal, Commander!" Commented Alice, her big black eyes gleamed in the light from the flashlights. "We should find another way." Trip frowned and hurriedly walked away towards the door, soon he was gone beyond it. Malcolm looked at Alice.

"Don't add insult to injury." He commented. "He's only got another decade or less to live anyway."

"My God." She almost whispered, looking at the now half open doors. Then she shuddered and looked at Malcolm again. "Yes sir." She said. _Fresh fish_. Malcolm thought. _They're always like that. But soon they'll be just as rotten as the rest of us._

It took less then ten minutes for Trip to do his magic. Malcolm had seated himself in the corridor, feeling how the painkillers were wearing off. The light above him came to life with a flicker, but they were not bright. Trip emerged from the doors, he was sweating.

"We have power, Commander. But I don't know for how long! Their gondolas are broken and the thing will most likely explode in a day or so. There's nothing I can do about it…" He sat down in the hallway.

"Are you allright?" Asked Hayes, giving him some water.

"It's hot as hell in there, some of the piping's broke." Answered Trip.

"We should go." Said Hayes. Malcolm rocked back and then forwards, gaining momentum to get up. When he stood, Hayes nodded and set off towards the bridge. "I sent a sample of the unknown material to the _Defiant_" He added. "The new doctor is going to take a look at it." Malcolm looked at the walls; there was indeed something on them at places. Where it came from or what it was he could not say. Nor did he know where the crew was.

After securing the bridge Malcolm ordered Alice to start copying the log. In the meanwhile he and Trip began searching the ship's sensor logs. Hayes searched for any sign of the other ships. Trip was the first one to find something.

"This ship was disabled at all the vital control points. It's a miracle that the bridge remains. The engines, life support, shields… everything is either down or failing." He announced.

"It looks like all the escape pods were destroyed or burnt up as they fell into the atmosphere of Antikol Beta." Said Malcolm.

"Aren't they supposed to withstand atmospheric decent?" Asked Trip, looking puzzled.

"They should." Commented Hayes from the front. "I have found where the rest of the ships are. They managed to move away from whatever attacked this ship. They assembled in another system. The beacon deployed with a recorded message of their position was also destroyed." He turned, facing Malcolm. "We should report this to Empress Sato." Malcolm could not disagree. She would become suspicious soon if they did _not_ report anything. He nodded for Hayes to make a transmission.

"Hey!" Said Trip. "One of the pods made it through, it's on the planet surface!" He eyed his monitor once again. "One lifesign! _Vulcan_…" He added.

"Commander Reed." Malcolm turned to the screen. It was Hoshi.

"Yes Empress." He said, rising.

"Report." Malcolm nodded for Hayes.

"We know where the other ships are, they are in another system. Their beacon was destroyed."

"Are there any hostilities onboard?" Asked Hoshi.

"No ma'am." Hayes answered.

"Then you and the MACO's may return, you can tell me everything in person. Reed, you continue looking for whatever did this." She said.

"Yes Empress." Responded Malcolm. Hoshi broke the connection.

"Later, sir." Said Hayes. A second later he was beamed away together with the MACO detachment. Malcolm turned to Alice.

"How is it going with the log?" He asked.

"It is proving difficult, sir. Much of it is damaged or destroyed, I am trying to salvage as much of it as possible into my memory pad. It looks like the station could shout down any time!"

"It most certainly will." Said Trip. "I am registering an increasing amount of powerspikes around the ship; I would say we have an hour left before things start to go haywire around here."

"Then pick up the pace!" Said Malcolm. The bridge became silent. At times fuses blew inside the walls surrounding the bridge. A little rain of sparks flew over Malcolm and he ducked. After reassuring himself that nothing more would come flying onto his head he returned to his screen. This ship had fired at something at the surface, but been unsuccessful. As far as he could tell the damage had been minimal. There was nothing more he could get from the computer.

He rose and walked over to Trip, he was leaning his head on one of his hands, and pressing the screen with the other. He frowned as Malcolm neared.

"I have the coordinates for the escape pod. We should be able to beam down quite close to it."

"Are the transporters working from this end?" Asked Malcolm.

"They should be working, but I'll probably have to realign them again unless you want to come out on the other end looking like an amoeba. But wait… _you already do_!" Answered Trip.

"It is you who look like one of God's mistakes, Charles!" Said Malcolm angrily. "Now do whatever you need to do to those transporters, and try not to die from radiation poisoning while doing it!" Trip got up from his seat. He looked about to strike Malcolm, but did not. Instead he marched out from the bridge, glaring at Malcolm as the doors closed.

Malcolm walked around on the bridge for a time, cooling his temper. Then he turned to Alice again.

"Well, do you have anything?" He asked. Alice turned to him.

"Yes, it is obvious something on the surface opened fire on the ships…"

"On all _twelve_ of them?"

"Yes sir. Then they tried to fight it back but could for some reason not destroy the weapons. As this ship became incapacitated the others turned and ran, deploying a beacon. Which is now destroyed. The escape pods were launched. The last entry seems to show that something was shot from the planet surface, it killed the remaining crew."

"And then destroyed the escape pods?"

"That would be a reasonable conclusion, sir." Alice said. Then the terminal began to fizzle. Smoke came out from behind the screen.

"Move away" Ordered Malcolm. Alice got up, unplugging her pad. As she walked away the station began burning. He looked at the screen again, at the planet. If it had such a weapon, could he not use it to stop Hoshi? It was a long shot, but not as long as remaining onboard the _Defiant_. He took out his communicator. As he was about to hail Trip, someone hailed him.

"Commander Reed?" It was Hoshi, she sounded… pleased, almost happy.

"Reed here." He answered. Alice gave him a look.

"Your communication shut down?"

"Affirmative." He responded. Hoshi laughed at the other end.

"Well, that's for the best I guess." She said. Malcolm took a breath.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Malcolm, really! How long have we known each other? Well no matter, Travis had some suspicions about spies onboard the ship, but for it to be _you_… and _Trip_!" She laughed again. "How does anyone manage to bring you two _together_?"

"What are you talking about? What has Travis told you?" Asked Malcolm intensely.

"Oh no, Travis did not say anything, he just borrowed you little booth – well designed by the way – to test one of his theories." Malcolm gave Alice a glance. _Major Hayes_. She worded quietly, looking quite upset. _They wouldn't would they?_

"What have you done?" Roared Malcolm.

"I always strive to make _my_ empire as stable as possible, Malcolm. You should understand… you played this game longer than I! But now our time for talk is over, you can remain for the rest of your days, or rather minutes, onboard that ship, thinking of how well you could have served _me_ instead of those corrupted admirals on Earth! I even have a small present for you, Malcolm. You can spend your last time together with your _friends_!" The link was broken. A tingling foreboded a transporter ray, and indeed something materialized on the floor.

"By all the Emperors!" Exclaimed Alice. "It's Hayes!" She dropped down on the floor, so did Malcolm. Hayes was curled up, sweating and shaking. He didn't even notice them. An explosion on the hull made Malcolm run for the tactical station. As he suspected, the _Defiant_ was shooting at them.

"Get him up, now! We need to get to the transporter room!" He yelled.

"We'll never make it!" Called Alice while pulling up Hayes. He had fallen into unconsciousness. Malcolm took Hayes other arm and supported some of his weight.

"We don't have a choice, _GO_!" He cried. Thankfully Alice was just as strong as she looked and they moved off the bridge as fast as they could. As they descended Malcolm opened the communicator, which he was still holing in his hand. "TRIP!" He called.

"Are we being shot at?" Asked Trip from the other end.

"Get the transporter ready to beam down _four_ people to the coordinates! We only have a minute or so before this ship blows!"

"Four?" Asked Trip, it sounded like he was doing something else at the same time.

"Just _DO IT_!" Yelled Malcolm.

"Aye aye!" Trip responded then broke the connection. Malcolm felt how sweat was running down his face. His abdomen was sending hot waves of pain up his chest as well. Ignoring everything but movement, he urged Alice on as they made it through yet another hallway. The lights failed as they came down to the same deck as the transporter room. They were forced to slow the last stretch, as the darkness was total.

As if knowing they could not see anything, Trip stuck his head out into the hallway. The transporter room was still powered. He noticed them, took a second glance at Hayes, and returned inside. Malcolm and Alice walked sideways in and put Hayes down on the transporter.

"We need to go ASAP!" Commented Malcolm, listening how the hull began whining under the pressure. A shot hit something close by, shaking the room so violently they all fell on the floor.

"I'm almost done!" Said Trip. "But if we come out on the other side looking like Malcolm, it's not my fault!" He adjusted another lever slightly before nodding to Malcolm. "Now!" He said. Alice jumped onto a pad, so did Malcolm and Trip, after hitting the _GO_ button. He barely made it onto the pad before they were disassembled and transported down to the planet. Something that felt like blast wave hit Malcolm as he felt himself assembling again. Without glancing at the world of Antikol, he fainted.


	9. Chapter 9

_He was not himself. Instead it was as if he followed another person's movement. He saw a forest that seemed to stretch for an eternity down a hillside, above them was the yellowish light of sunset. There were MACO soldiers around him. They were signing with their hands. Stop. Two, that way. One, with me. He now saw that he "possessed" a female body, the leading Sergeant no doubt. Seeing through her eyes he saw how she raised her rifle. In the scope he saw himself, then Trip from the behind. The Sergeant signalled attack to the others, then fired off her rifle. Without being able to stop her, he watched how Trip stooped forward. The view quickly changed to his own surprised face. Someone else managed to shoot him in his shoulder and he fell on the ground. With a decisive shot the Sergeant fired a round at him, ending his life._

Alice felt the smell of flowers even before she realized she was lying on the ground. Carefully she opened her eyes. Everything was green. As the wind blew up her back she flinched, it had been so long she had almost forgotten what it felt like. Her hands probed the surroundings. She was obviously lying on a moss of some sort. There were high trees around her.

For a moment she just lay still, feeling a relief over not being transformed into Commander Tucker's amoeba. The thought made her giggle slightly. She turned on her back, finding the yellow-green sky quite nice. It reminded her of a hot summer's day in Cape Town. She realized she had a sore forehead; she must have bumped into something as she fell. Rising she wiped some of the blood from her face. It hurt more now, as she stood up. Pulling off a sleeve from her blue form, she took up her knife and cut it into a bandana, which she knit tightly around her head. The pain subsided.

"So, the survival training comes in handy after all!" She murmured to herself. But where were the others? She looked around, but could not see anything but trees, grass and small insects that flew in the sunlight. She recovered her phase pistol from the ground. With it in one hand she retrieved her scanner, it showed a dozen lifesigns within her vicinity. To reduce them she only searched humanoid lifesigns. She picked up two. One was in her vicinity, the other, almost at the edge of the scanner's range. She trekked for the closer one.

As she was closing in on the first biosign, the sun had already risen a couple of degrees. It was obviously morning on Antikol Beta. Before her was a patch of high grass, going up to her knees. She carefully strode through it, having her phaser at the ready. The last thing she wished was to get eaten by a hungry animal! The grass in front of her was broken, showing something had passed here recently. Slowing her step she looked closely around herself and indeed, she found a patch of darkness within the brownish green grass.

She closed in slowly, eying her surroundings. There was nothing there. Her gaze went to the ground again. A hand became visible as she pushed away some of the grass. Alice kneeled and followed the arm up to the shoulder. Below the MACO patch was the nametag. _M. REED._ She sighed and closed in, bending away the grass so she could see more than just one part of the body at once.

The Commander was lying on his stomach, as a caricature of a running man. Alice quickly set her hand to his neck, giving up a big sigh of relief when she felt the warmth of the skin and a pulse. Then she scanned him. No major injuries, as far as she understood things. It was a relief to find her Commander; after all, he was the MACO… If there was trouble ahead, she would need someone to keep her back safe, for the moment at least. A thought of simply killing him entered her mind. Yet it made no sense now… Being on a foreign planet she needed all the help she could get!

Closing in, Alice pulled the limp body over, putting Reed on his back. She took out a flashlight that was attached to his belt, turning it on. Then she placed his head in her lap, checking the pupil response. It contracted as she opened the eye and shone with the light on it. That was good! It meant that there was no neurological damage either. The scarring on his face, above the brow, on the cheek and jaw was old as well, which meant she could not do anything more for him. All she could do now was to wait until he woke up. Her thoughts began to wander.

_Death._ Was he dead? Malcolm took a quick breath and opened his eyes. A face made him jolt and reach for his knife. A memory of Pace with his skulking silhouette came to mind. A hand softer than Pace's stopped Malcolm's attempts to reach his knife.

"If I wished to kill you, Commander, you would already be dead." Said Alice. Malcolm blinked a few times. It was indeed Alice. And she had a valid point. He relaxed slightly. His body felt like after a few hours in the agony booth.

"How long..?" He asked as he rose into a sitting position. His stomach did not agree to the action. Had Alice kept him in her lap? A faint smile rolled over his face but disappeared quickly.

"One hour or so, I found you fifteen minutes ago." Alice answered. She had a bandana around her forehead.

"The others?" Asked Malcolm.

"I have an additional lifesign ten minutes that way." Alice said and pointed into the woods.

"And you?" He gestured to her head.

"Oh, it's nothing sir, really. We were lucky not to materialize inside a tree!" Malcolm nodded, and then he sat quiet for a while. Regaining some strength he rose. "Are you sure?" Alice asked.

"We need to move. Whether I am fine or not does not matter." He muttered under his breath.

"Just don't die on me sir; you are the only one who keeps Commander Tucker in place." She said and rose. Malcolm nodded. That was as close to "I hope you will be fine" he would ever get. They paced off into the forest, Malcolm with his rifle ready and Alice with the scanner. He looked at the sky; it was not yet sunset… that gave them plenty of time to gather before the events of his "dream". A creeping unease about these dreams and visions had been spreading for the last few days inside of him. _Why? How? For what purpose?_ If he could only know…

As they neared the next lifesign, they slowed their pace. Malcolm cautiously surveyed the surroundings, and then looked at Alice. She shook her head. Nothing. He continued forward, finding a pair of legs sticking out from behind a tree. The colour of the trousers was blue, making them Trip's.

"Tucker." He pointed. Alice nodded. They walked around the tree, finding Trip unconscious. Malcolm took another glance around, nothing. He crouched near the body and felt the pulse. It was there.

"Delta radiation decay increasing." Said Alice as she closed.

"No wonder." He responded. "Scan him." Alice let the scanner hover over Trip. Malcolm noticed burns on Trip's hands. Examining them closer he found them to be recent. A little memento from the engine room, most probably.

"With the exception of the delta radiation, he has a concussion. I am not a doctor but, that is what I believe."

"That is sufficient." Said Malcolm. "Any sign of Hayes?" Alice shook her head. Malcolm looked at Trip again. Then he sat down. He was so tired!

"We wait sir?" Asked Alice. He nodded.

As he opened his eyes again, the sun had risen almost to zenith. Feeling sluggish he drank some of his water. It was half empty. Head he been asleep? Looking at the clock he found it to be so, he had slept over two and a half hour! Embarrassed by his evident lack of self-control he massaged his forehead for a while.

Alice was sitting by a tree, fiddling with her scanner. As she saw he was awake her face broke up into a smile. Her white teeth were dazzling. She did not say anything, though. Malcolm turned his attention to Trip. He had been moving around. Pouring some water into his hand, Malcolm splashed it over Trips face.

"Time to wake up!" He said. "Real world hailing Commander Tucker!" That seemed to make Trip stir slightly. Malcolm took a breath and then shouted: "The engine is about to explode!" Trip sat up instantly. For a second he stared in front of himself but then began falling backwards. Malcolm caught him by the collar, levering him down slowly.

"You scared the living daylights out of me, Malcolm!" Trip winced and covered his eyes with his hand.

"How are you feeling?" Asked Alice. She sat down on the opposite side of Trip.

"A hell of a lot worse than I did before." Trip grumbled and rolled over to the side, pushing himself up from the ground.

"Drink." Said Malcolm, giving him the water. Trip accepted, this time without any complaints. That was rare and meant only one thing; he was in a really bad shape. Malcolm actually pitied him slightly, something he had never done before. But then he had never seen him in such a sorry state before..! Trip was pale and had dark rings under his eyes, adding to that he looked to have a slight fever.

"Which way is the escape pod?" Asked Malcolm. Alice pointed even further into the woods. "How far?"

"An hour or two." She responded.

"Where is Hayes?" Asked Trip, standing up on wobbling legs.

"Our scanners can't find him, but our best shot is that he's made a landing somewhere in that general direction… We seemed scattered along a diagonal line." Said Alice.

"That's odd." Commented Trip. Malcolm rose to his feet as well. The sluggishness he had felt was still left. He hoped it would disappear if they began moving.

"We need to go, there's food and supplies in the pod. Including painkillers." That seemed to get Trip's attention.

"What are we waiting for?" He said. "Let's go!" Malcolm turned to Alice.

"You first, then me and Trip." She nodded and walked away into the forest. Trip raised his rifle and followed, so did Malcolm. Soon they were gone in the midst of the lush forest.


	10. Chapter 10

One hour later Malcolm began feeling anxious. It did look like the sun was setting, and the clouds were a bright orange colour. To the left of their forest trail was a cliff, giving them a bird's eye view of the valley below them. The forest stretched on to infinity… Above some of the mountains there were clouds, covering their peaks. Everything seemed surreal. The pastel coloured forest, their own green trail and the green orange sky… Was this what the mirror _Enterprise_ had been doing on her voyages? Exploring worlds?

Right now, with only the wind rustling the trees and their own steps falling on the soft ground, it seemed not such a bad idea. But then it was not applicable in their universe. Sooner or later, someone always began to fight! He looked forward.

"Any lifesigns?" He asked.

"Plenty, but none human…" She said.

"Don't forget we have a Vulcan running around down here." Said Trip. He looked slightly better now.

"No, none Vulcan." Alice said. "The pod should be about half an hour from here." Malcolm looked up into the forest at their right side. Could the MACO's hide their biosigns? He turned to Trip.

"Did you manage to evade that guy in engineering I warned you about?" Trip stirred from his thoughts.

"He was dealt with, why?"

"We are not alone on this planet, Trip. Hoshi must have sent a MACO squad after us or the escape pod."

"What makes you so sure?" Malcolm hesitated, but as he knew he would indeed die if he did nothing, so he told Trip everything. From the second he got up in sickbay to the dream before he woke up. Trips face changed from amused at first to almost concerned in the end. For a moment he did not speak.

"Why do you spill your guts like that?" He asked, finally. He seemed uncomfortable with the situation. Malcolm did not blame him.

"I don't want to die." He said bluntly.

"What makes you think _I_ of all people would help _you_?" Asked Trip angrily. "You should have thought about that before you put me in the agony booth!"

"Because you are killed before I am… and even if you do not believe that, you said yourself that this was bigger than you and me. It's about _Earth_. I don't expect you to care a damn about me but if Hoshi makes her move, which is almost certain that she will by now, _people_ are going to die. Are you willing to risk you family's life? _Elisabeth's life_?" Malcolm looked at Trip. He seemed to have hit home. The anger had disappeared from Trips face for a moment, leaving an almost sad look on his scarred face.

Malcolm fished out a datapad from his inner pocket, on it he had selected files from the database onboard the _Defiant_. He brought up the image file of the mirror Tucker and Reed. He gave it to Trip as some kind of half-hearted peace offering.

"I found it onboard the _Defiant_ in the database, obviously we should be able to… work together." Trip examined the photo, and then gave up a chilly smile.

"Lieutenant Reed?" He laughed. "I am your superior officer there? And why do you wear Starfleet clothes?" He looked wide eyed at the picture, then at Malcolm.

"In the mirror universe I am not a part of the MACO unit." Malcolm said dryly. Trip gave him the pad back.

"When do these imaginary people appear?" He asked, clearly wishing to change subject. Seeing oneself being _different _was indeed unsettling.

"Soon. Do you think they could fool our sensors?" Asked Malcolm.

"Probably, ours are not that good and Hayes had his tricorder with him."

"Are there any other signals they would be emitting?"

"Perhaps, electro magnetic fields I guess, but they would have to be pretty close to be detected."

"All we need is a second or two." Said Malcolm.

"I'll see what I can do." Responded Trip and took up his scanner. He opened it on the back and began working on the sensors. Malcolm walked up to Alice.

"We can take a break, Trip is going to adjust his sensor." He said.

"Why?" Asked Alice. "Is there something wrong?"

"There could be people in the woods, looking for us." He realized that that sounded stupid.

"Whatever you say, sir." Said Alice, glad to be able to rest.

"Keep your eyes on the scanner." He said to her. She nodded.

Some minutes later Trip had made the adjustments needed to the scanner. Malcolm looked over the forest. It was quiet and slightly eerie with long shadows falling on the ground. Obviously a day here was shorter than a standard day. The sky had darkened to a deep orange colour, only leaving green around the setting sun. He sat completely still, tilting his head to be able to hear better. In his hands lay the rifle with a setting to kill.

Alice gave him a slight wave. She signalled towards a rise further up the trail. She showed two fingers. Malcolm pointed at the scanner. She shook her head, putting a hand to her ear. He nodded, she had heard them. _A real Amazon!_ He thought. Trip took up his rifle, nodding to Malcolm. He pointed to his scanner, showing four fingers. Two above them, two in front. Malcolm took a deep breath and lay down in the moss. He hoped his dream was not a prophecy.

Time seemed to stand still for the minute or so that he lay in the moss. Every sense was on edge, he saw everything, heard every fly; the smell of the forest engulfed him. He knew where Trip was, and that Alice was behind him as well. Then he saw a boot, a leg and finally a hand with a rifle. He lowered his neck to be able to watch through his scope. Soon there was a head; he knew it to be the female Sergeant he had seen. Her aim was to the right, probably at Trip.

Malcolm took a breath, counted his heartbeats as they slowed down. He aimed for the head and right in between two of the beats he fired. The sound from his rifle seemed to speed up time. The Sergeant fell down, dead. He could hear Trip firing at the second person above them, so he turned his attention to Alice. She was firing her phaser from behind a tree.

Aiming, Malcolm fired off a couple of shots as he rolled downhill, bringing himself closer to Alice. The two MACO's from the front had advanced shooting too close for Malcolm to be comfortable with his position. As one of them tried to advance, Malcolm almost hit him. _Almost._ The MACO fired back, singing Malcolm's right arm. The pain made him drop his rifle. Cursing Malcolm jumped behind a tree. A few shots hit the tree. The splinters cascaded around him.

A body came rolling from the hill. It was the second MACO. A dirty Trip came jumping out of a bush. He gave Malcolm a glance before hiding. Malcolm caught something in the corner of his eye and rolled away. A beam flew past him, almost hitting Trip. He cursed and retreated. Somewhere to the left Alice managed to shoot down the third MACO, giving off a small cry of joy. Malcolm looked up. It was the second one of the candidates on the Major list. Malcolm knew he should have killed him earlier! He raised his rifle eagerly, ready to shoot Malcolm. There was a certain glow in his eyes saying he had wished to do this for a long time.

He was beginning to push the trigger when his facial expression changed from eager to surprised. Malcolm, who had expected death, now stared at the man. Something seemed to shake him from behind. The MACO slowly turned and to his astonishment, Malcolm saw two… arrows sticking out of his back. A third one hit him right in his forehead. The body stood for a while before it fell down on the ground.

Malcolm scrambled to his feet, staring at the dead body. Realizing his mouth was open he closed it. From behind a tree, Trip's head appeared. He looked at the body and the arrows. It confused him just as much. Then his glance changed from the body to Malcolm, who raised his shoulders, he did not know who it came from either. Trip gave up a sudden gesture and pointed behind Malcolm. As he turned, a fifth MACO appeared from the undergrowth. With a raised rifle he shot at Malcolm, who managed to drop back on the ground. The shot missed him. He was half a second away from firing a second shot when a hand on his shoulder made him freeze. The grip paralyzed the MACO and as he fell a second hand appeared. Together they quickly snapped the MACO's neck. He fell dead on the moss.

Malcolm lay still for a while. Then he faced the person in front of him. He was clad in a grey-brown robe with dark grey clothing underneath. It melted excellent into the shadows. In one hand he had a bow. Malcolm now realized from where the arrows came! Over his back hung a quiver of arrows, self made no doubt. The face was pale with striking black eyebrows and short cut hair… and pointy ears. A pair of cold blue eyes studied him.

"Trip…" Said Malcom. "I think I found your Vulcan." From behind, Trip emerged together with Alice.

"I'll be damned." He said. "You are actually alive?"

"How long have you been here?" Asked Malcom. The Vulcan looked back at him.

"Three days, five hours and three minutes. Earth standard time" He added.

"You are the only one that survived from the ship in orbit?" Asked Trip.

"It would appear so." He answered. Malcolm retrieved his rifle.

"How do I know you're not here to kill me?" He asked. The Vulcan seemed slightly offended by the question.

"If I wished to kill you and your team, I could have done so half a day ago, Commander."

"Look who's boasting..!" Said Trip.

"It is logical; I have, after all, followed you since your rather… crude arrival."

"Are we supposed to believe that?" Asked Alice.

"I recovered your fourth member and brought him back to the escape pod." Malcolm raised his eyebrows.

"Really? What's your name?"

"I am Lieutenant J'Sper; I was a lab assistant on my last ship."

"And you have Hayes?"

"Hayes?"

"Our fourth member, part of MACO, taller than me, probably not conscious."

"Oh, yes. I have him. Shall we go to my camp? He is there. You can ask questions on the way." The Vulcan gestured with his hand towards the trail that led forward. Malcolm fell in next to him after picking up some weapons and other useful material from the dead MACO's. Trip, still holing his rifle high, walked behind J'Sper with Alice by his side. The trail wound itself trough drowsy glades and quiet forest-dungeons up towards what seemed to be a high altitude plateau. The sun hung just above the mountains, colouring the sky around it green. Animals with big eyes hung from the branches on the trees, looking down at them. J'Sper turned to Malcolm.

"The MACO detachment, was it looking for me or you?" He asked.

"It is impossible to say, what I know is that they would have killed everything humanoid down here." Said Malcolm.

"How do you know?" J'Sper asked.

"Know? That is what I would have done." Answered Malcolm, as if that was obvious.

"Of course, sir. I understand. Would you explain to me why you are here?"

"Because the damn Empress has a happy idea about taking command of all the starships." Began Trip from behind their back. "And if Starfleet does not agree, she'll bomb Earth until they rethink!" Trip said and frowned. J'Sper raised an eyebrow.

"And it is your belief that Starfleet will not agree?"

"They would _never_ agree to anything like that." Said Trip.

"Because of this you somehow planned to… eliminate the Empress, but she got to you first and tried to kill you as you examined my old ship. You beamed down here in a most… odd fashion, and finally we met. Because that is how it happened, am I right?" Said J'Sper.

"How do you know all that?" Asked Alice.

"It's logical, what else would two commanders and a communications officer do here?"

"Perhaps we are here to find you?" Said Malcolm.

"The large ship you came with is no longer in orbit… So that does not seem probable." Malcolm gave Trip and Alice a quick look. That was not good news.

"What happened to your ship?" Asked Trip.

"I was studying the planet as we waited for the other ships, and it seemed quiet enough, but when the other eleven ships appeared something that looked like an automated defence system opened fire from the planet surface. Our ship, being closest to the planet was destroyed. The others escaped."

"Then that is our way off this rock. If someone built that kind of heavy defences, they must have had starships…" Pondered Malcolm.

"We will not be able to do anything tonight, sir. I suggest we rest until morning." Said J'Sper and pointed ahead. "My camp." Malcolm looked at what seemed to be the beginning of the plateau. An escape pod was lying half buried in the earth. It had ploughed up a long canal in the soil. Next to it was something that looked like a hearth, a person resembling Hayes was lying close to it. Malcolm looked at Alice and nodded towards the body. She nodded and moved ahead.

"Trip, check the surroundings with your scanner." He ordered. Behind him Trip swept with the scanner over the plain and then backwards towards the forest. He shook his head. "In that case…" Continued Malcolm. "I suppose we might take a rest." Everyone agreed.


	11. Chapter 11

J'Sper took down the buckled medical supply box from one of the shelves of the escape pod. After some careful searching he found two painkillers and a clean bandage. After returning the box to its place he turned to the female communications officer. She was sitting on one of the leaning chairs inside the pod. He had cleaned her wound as best as he could, but it would need to be bandaged. He sat down in the other chair and put away the painkillers.

"I will do my best at bandaging the wound, but I lack the medical expertise for any further treatment." He stated.

"It will do nicely." She said. "I am confident you have a steady hand."

"So does your commander, his aim was remarkable until he got shot." J'Sper noted.

"It's not the same thing." She said and looked up on him from underneath the bandage. "I am Alice Silverstone, I do communications mostly but also some rough work, as you man have noticed." She reached forward a hand. J'Sper halted his work and shook it, then he returned to the bandaging.

"J'Sper, Lieutenant, lab officer and now a competent woodsman." A hint of a smile passed his lips.

"Oh! I never met a joking Vulcan before!" Said Alice. "I thought you from Vulcan were supposed to be all snubbing-like." She lifted her head, looking over the bandage. It looked like a white bandana underneath her black hair.

"I was born on Earth." He commented.

"Well then!" She exclaimed. "I won't ask for details! Should we go out to the guys?" He gave a slight nod.

"Just tell me their names first. They are too busy to tell me them themselves."

"We've had a long day… well the entire week has been hectic." Said Alice. "That's Commander Malcolm Reed, he was a MACO Major before "Empress" Hoshi promoted him to her second in command. I do not know… but I heard she actually fancied him a little…" J'Sper's eyebrows went up. She gave a nod towards the Commander. He was doing something with the unknown scanning device that Hayes had carried. He was also a good half a head shorter than J'Sper. There was a certain kind of malignant feel about him. "He was in a coma for over two weeks after being blown up by some lizard; I heard he hasn't regained his form yet. And Hayes managed to get himself put into Reed's agony booth. That's why he's like that…" Continued Alice. "The other one is Commander Charles Tucker III, called Trip. He was the chief engineer onboard the _Enterprise_ and on the _Defiant_ until recent events…" J'Sper found Tucker to be slightly unpleasant, not just because he had been holding a rifle to his back all the way here and his attitude, but also because he had somehow managed to get half of his face scarred in a most displeasing fashion.

Alice continued: "I have been told that he is a wizard with anything mechanical, though. He and Commander Reed do not get along very well, I am surprised they managed not to shoot each other in the woods today..!"

"Why is he scarred like that?" Asked J'Sper. Alice seemed to pale slightly, as if she was anxious about talking of this subject. She continued in a quiet voice.

"Delta radiation damage… I heard he doesn't have long to live…" Alice said with wide eyes. "I…I feel slightly sorry for him actually." J'Sper pulled out the painkillers from his pocket.

"How do you know so much, Alice?" He wondered. Happy to change the subject, Alice turned to him.

"Communication officer, do you remember..? We know everything!" She said smiling; still her eyes lingered on Tucker. "I'm going to sleep now." She said gesturing to her bandage.

J'Sper also walked out; first he gave Tucker his shot of painkillers. The engineer seemed to relax slightly, he lay down on his assigned mattress and closed his eyes without a word. Reed was already expecting him as he sat down next to him by the fire.

"This is everything we have?" He asked in his British dialect. Before J'Sper answered Reed had already injected all the painkillers into his neck.

"We have enough for tomorrow." Answered J'Sper. Reed looked at Hayes.

"What about him?"

"Neural damage as far as I understand, your booth did its job." Reed did not flinch at the comment.

"We were very careful not to include any permanent neural damage when designing the booth; Hoshi must have used something else… But you know what I'm talking about, don't you Lieutenant?" Reed's glance was piercing. "I know what lab assistants do, especially _Vulcan_ ones."

"You know more than you appear to do, Commander." Answered J'Sper. Sometimes, he thought, an unimposing skin hid a most formidable mind.

"I also know that you can do something about it, or at least try." J'Sper raised his eyebrows.

"I have never…" He began. Reed interrupted him.

"Tonight, Lieutenant. That's an order. Help Hayes and help yourself… otherwise Trip'll blast your pointy ears off tomorrow morning. Do you understand?" Reed lay down on his mattress, still holding his rifle in both his hands. His blue eyes were focused on J'Sper.

"I will do what I can to save your Major, but if I do, I want a weapon in return."

"Agreed." Said Reed and closed his eyes, soon he was asleep. J'Sper moved over to Major Hayes. Assured everyone was asleep he put three fingers on each side of the Majors head. Slowly he said:

"Your mind to my mind… Your thoughts to my thoughts…"


	12. Chapter 12

Malcolm did not quite manage to open his eyes the first time he woke. All he could tell was that it was still dark and quiet, enough persuasion for him to go to sleep again with his hands tightly wrapped around his rifle. The second time he woke, it was from someone pushing him. It was not a light push either, but more like a light blow to the shoulder.

"Trip..!" He grumbled and opened his eyes, blinking. He massaged his shoulder and looked around, finding Trip by the fire, cooking something. He had obviously also managed to get water from somewhere as he was gulping I down from his filled water can.

"Beauty sleep's over." Trip commented in an evil voice. "How's your guts?"

"My guts were fine until you woke me." Said Malcolm. "Now I'm hungry." Actually, things _were_ better. The tiredness from yesterday was almost gone.

"We have rations." Said Trip and looked down into the pot hanging over the fire. His face told Malcolm it was crewman's rations – the worst sort. Feeling the smell waft towards him he rose quickly, pulling the rifle back over his back. Alice was still sleeping close to the pod. Hayes was also asleep, but his small twitches had stopped. Had J'Sper done his work?

Malcolm looked around, finding him inside the escape pod, he did not have his cloak on, but instead he had managed to fetch himself a baseball-cap with the letters "NX-08" on it. He was wearing it. As he noticed Malcolm he rose from a pair of backpacks. They were small, but then there was not much food in the pod either.

"Sir." He said. "You should be able to wake Hayes today, but he will not be… himself for a few days."

"You actually managed to… do something… to him?"

"It _was_ difficult, sir. I have never used my telepathy for something so trivial as to repair someone's neural pathways." Commented J'Sper, then he began packing the bags again. Malcolm just shrugged, he did not care what J'Sper had done before, what mattered what they were supposed to do now.

"I noticed small energy readings towards the west yesterday evening. I believe that is where we should go."

"I agree, if there is any hope of getting home – and stopping Hoshi – it's that way." Agreed J'Sper. Malcolm walked out again. Trip had moved away from the pot with rations and was now examining the tricorder. Taking no notice of him, Malcolm continued towards Hayes and squatted next to him.

"Major?" He tried. That seemed to do some good. "Hayes..?" Hayes took a deep breath and opened his eyes. For a moment he looked afraid, but it soon passed as he saw Malcolm. His face changed to express guilt.

"I… Hoshi she knows…" He began.

"I know." Said Malcolm. Trip had also overheard Hayes and closed in.

"Your damn booth sir." He said while managing to give Malcolm a slap on his arm. "You didn't have time to do anything more productive than that with your time onboard the _Enterprise_?"

"It works very good I understand." Malcolm said.

"Nothing compared to a _Vulcan_ science officer!" Said Hayes. "By the Emperor my head hurts!"

"It's gonna hurt some more, Major." Said Trip. "Ration's ready!" Hayes face turned even sourer.

The day was cooler than the last one. Above their heads floated high thin clouds, strikingly white towards the light green and orange sky. The plateau did not have much forest, as the lowlands they had been through yesterday. The trees were more like big bushes. A chill, but not unpleasant wind blew across the plateau. Malcolm was leading their little group. From the early morning he had felt that his nose was itching from the grass on the plateau, but it was not as serious as it was back home. He remembered some dreadful springs when he was still a boy. He had been sick more than a few times!

J'Sper was pacing close behind him, taking readings with the tricording device. It was a device unlike any he had ever seen, just like the two phasers they had brought with them from the _Defiant_. The entire ship was… distant. Both in time and thought. With exceptions to the three things, they only had one rifle each and two phaser guns still from the _Enterprise_. And their scanners of course.

"The electric and magnetic distortions are getting stronger." Commented J'Sper automatically. Behind him, Trip and Alice were taking turns at helping Hayes. He walked by himself, but sometimes his balance did not seem to be in place. He was unusually pleased with the situation as well. And it was not just a good night's sleep… that Malcolm was sure of! They continued in the same pace for yet another few hours until they arrived to a small waterway.

"We take ten minutes." Said Malcolm and sat down next to the stream. The other joined his example. Trip scanned the water, arriving to the conclusion that it was of the same quality that he had found this morning, probably coming from the same spring. J'Sper was still looking into the tricorder.

"Where exactly are we going?" Asked Trip. "Because we don't seem to be moving at all…"

"This high altitude plateau is so big you do not notice that you travel, Commander Tucker." Said J'Sper. "But if I interpret these readings correctly, we should be approaching a massive power source. Perhaps it is the one that supplied energy for the weapons that attacked the fleet in orbit…" J'Sper stopped and looked towards the plateau. He was frozen like a statue. "Something moved over there."

Malcolm stood up, putting up his binoculars to his eyes. There was indeed earth flying up from something in the ground, as if something was rising from the ground. He watched it for a moment, not knowing what to do. They could not hide, nor run, so they could just watch.

"What in the name of…" Began Trip, also holding a binocular.

"Have we activated something?" Asked J'Sper. A second later a light brighter than the sun flashed before their eyes. It was soundless.


End file.
